Bridge to the Past:

A Management Plan for Pennsylvania’s Historic Metal Truss Bridges
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Technical Manual and Guidance

A major component of the Historic Metal Truss Management Plan was the development of guidance for both the maintenance of the bridges and for the marketing of bridges for adaptive reuse.

The Maintenance Manual

Proper and effective maintenance is probably the single most important factor in the preservation of metal truss bridges as safe, reliable and historic elements of a modern transportation network. The Maintenance Manual includes documented best practices, methods and materials recommendations for maintaining and preserving metal truss bridges. The manual draws from a variety of technical publications and manuals, and from American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) guidance, and follows the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation. You can download the Maintenance Manual HERE.

The Adaptive Reuse Guidance

When truss bridges can’t be kept in service at their original locations, they sometimes can be preserved through adaptive reuse. This usually involves an entity such as a municipality, an agency, a non-profit organization, a university, or even a private individual acquiring the bridge. In most cases a bridge that’s slated for reuse needs to be rehabilitated and moved to a new location to begin its new life. This process can involve some fairly complex legal, fiscal and engineering considerations. To help potential bridge owners navigate those complexities, PennDOT has developed some guidance for parties potentially interested in acquiring an historic metal truss bridge at our Bridge Marketing Page..